Cape Wind has selected the joint venture team of Flatiron Construction Corp., Cal Dive International, Inc., and Cashman Equipment Corp. as its construction contractor to build America's first offshore wind farm in Nantucket Sound.
Cape Wind president Jim Gordon said, "We are confident this is the right team with the best skills and capabilities to successfully build Cape Wind and create hundreds of jobs in the region."
Cape Wind has encouraged the joint venture to seek out subcontracting opportunities with local firms that may be able to offer competitive equipment or services. Cape Wind expects to begin construction in 2013.
Cashman has constructed many marine projects in the state and New England and is one of the leading providers of floating marine equipment in the country and provides floating marine equipment worldwide. Company president Jaime Cashman said, "I am thrilled that our Massachusetts company will be helping to make Cape Wind happen."
Colorado-based Flatiron Construction Corp. is one of the leading construction and civil engineering firms in the U.S. "We are excited to build Cape Wind, this project is moving forward and there is no better way for us to enter the US offshore wind market than to help build the first commercial project," said Rik van den Berg, project manager, for Flatiron.
Houston-based Cal Dive International, Inc. is a market leading U.S. based offshore energy marine construction and manned diving firm, "Cal Dive has successfully completed multiple projects in the Northeast United States and we bring over thirty-five years of marine construction experience to the Cape Wind project. We are excited about the opportunity to expand our business into the offshore wind sector," Cal Dive International, Inc. general manger, construction, Russell Vandiver said.
Gerard Dhooge, president of the Boston & New England Maritime Trades Council, AFL-CIO, said, "Today's announcement is a major milestone for Cape Wind and brings closer the day that we can put a lot of our local members to work constructing America's first offshore wind energy facility while building a better energy future for our country."
"Our joint venture team will work closely with Cape Wind to ensure that we incorporate the best practices developed by the offshore wind industry over its twenty year history," Rik van den Berg, project manager, for Flatiron Const. said, "Cape Wind isn't just about building America's first offshore wind farm, it's about building the skill set among American companies to catalyze a domestic offshore wind industry supply chain,".
Cape Wind is America's first offshore wind farm to secure federal and state approval and to be issued a lease to operate by the Federal Government. Cape Wind will create jobs and promote greater energy independence and a cleaner environment. Cape Wind will also establish Massachusetts as a leader in offshore wind power.
Flatiron, with a construction volume of more than $1 billion in 2011, is one of the leading providers of transportation construction and civil engineering in North America. Flatiron develops innovative solutions to construct infrastructure, including roads, bridges, tunnels, and rail transit and energy infrastructure, for both public and private clients. Flatiron also operates as a contractor in design-build and public-private partnership projects. Founded in 1947, the firm is a subsidiary of HOCHTIEF, one of the world's leading international construction service providers.
Cal Dive International, Inc., headquartered in Houston, is a marine contractor that provides an integrated offshore construction solution to its customers, including manned diving, pipelay and pipe burial, platform installation and platform salvage services to the offshore oil and natural gas industry on the Gulf of Mexico OCS, Northeastern U.S., Latin America, Southeast Asia, China, Australia, the Middle East and the Mediterranean, with a fleet of 28 vessels, including 18 surface and saturation diving support vessels and 10 construction barges.
Cashman Equipment Corp. specializes in marine and general (heavy civil) construction, marine equipment rental and sales that includes ABS and inland barges. The company has both the expertise and the equipment to provide the highest levels of services and products available in the marine industry.